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Within the Uchiha Clan compound in Konoha Village.
People moved in a dense stream, friendly smiles adorning their faces as they chatted animatedly, their serene expressions radiating an approachable warmth.
Children, in groups of three to five, chased and played, their innocent laughter subtly stealing the attention of those around them.
"What an irritating sight..."
A hint of annoyance, yet spoken with the mature voice of a young boy, drifted through the air. It was a voice filled with complexity, sentiment, and even a touch of melancholic sadness, creating an utterly absurd sensation.
It was clearly a child's voice, yet it carried the aged weariness of someone who had seen the ebb and flow of human life for over seventy years.
The black-haired boy's clear eyes sparkled like stars, shining brilliantly. His fair face gazed out the window at the figures chasing and frolicking, his once bright gaze now dull and lifeless, a flicker of isolated loneliness passing through them.
The boy's name was Uchiha Wuchen, and his status was exceptionally distinguished. He was the current head of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Fugaku's, only child – a singular seedling. As the young clan head of a prestigious and powerful family like the Uchiha, Wuchen's status went without saying; only a handful of individuals in Konoha Village could rival him.
In truth, from birth until the age of five, Wuchen had been revered and admired, becoming a topic of delighted conversation for everyone. It wasn't until five years later that everything underwent a drastic change.
Even now, Wuchen felt a hazy, dreamlike disbelief when he thought back on it, as if it were all an unreality. Yet, each time he awoke from these reveries, he was reminded of the cruel reality.
At the age of five, as the future young clan head of the Uchiha, Wuchen also began to attempt to refine Chakra. However, the cruel reality revealed to him that... he couldn't refine Chakra at all!
Being unable to refine Chakra meant being unable to become a ninja. In a combat-oriented clan like the Uchiha, the future clan head being a "useless" individual who couldn't refine Chakra caused an unimaginable uproar and impact.
Wuchen instantly fell from his pedestal, his reputation tarnished overnight.
His nominal father, Uchiha Fugaku, saw Wuchen as an eyesore and a thorn in his side, wishing to be rid of him as soon as possible. After all, the title "the clan head's son is useless" dealt too heavy a blow to his prestige.
Uchiha Fugaku couldn't directly resort to murder, as killing one's son was hardly a good reputation to have. So, he simply banished Wuchen from his main residence, effectively putting him out of sight and out of mind.
"Hoo~"
Taking a deep breath, the ten-year-old Wuchen already understood the fickleness of human nature and the saying that "human sentiment is thinner than paper." This was because his soul originated entirely from the "third dimension," making him someone who had lived two lives.
"Damn it, you accursed old heavens! If you were going to make me a cripple, what's the point of sending me to this world riddled with war, where human lives are as cheap as grass? Is it to let others mock me? Or to let the gears of fate crush me?!"
Despite knowing that complaining to the heavens was a fool's errand, Wuchen couldn't help but roar skyward, closing his eyes in despair and lamenting the injustice of the world.
Wuchen's future younger brother, Uchiha Itachi, and his third brother, Uchiha Sasuke, were both geniuses among geniuses. Uchiha Itachi even awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan at the age of thirteen, infinitely stronger than Wuchen.
Currently, Wuchen couldn't even manage the most basic Chakra refinement, let alone awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan. Born of the same mother, the disparity between them was as vast as heaven and earth.
"Boy, are you very unwilling...?" Just then, an indifferent voice sounded. Though detached, the clear tone was remarkably pleasant, and it distinctly belonged to a woman.
"Who's there? Show yourself!"
Wuchen, who had been lamenting the unfairness of the heavens, was startled awake from his daze. His sharp gaze swept around, and he roared, "This is the Uchiha compound! If you don't want to die, get out now!"
To dare to infiltrate the Uchiha Clan, a place teeming with experts, alone, showed no small amount of courage.
"No need to shout. I only exist within your mind; only you can hear my voice." The pleasant female voice maintained its usual placid, ancient-well-like calmness, devoid of any emotional fluctuations.
"—"
Frowning slightly, a look of hesitation appearing on his face, Wuchen spoke softly, "Who are you? There shouldn't be anyone in this world connected to me."
Sensing no hostility from the owner of the melodious voice in his mind, Wuchen lowered his guard.
"You don't need to know who I am. I am merely a tool to help you become stronger..."
Time, like a white steed flashing past a crack, flew by, and half a month had passed. Although Uchiha Wuchen had been cast aside by Uchiha Fugaku and left unattended, he had still been arranged into a rather grand courtyard. After all, he was still the young clan head, and too much austerity would inevitably invite gossip.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
A spherical burst of flame spewed from Wuchen's mouth, coalescing into a massive, scorching fireball, radiating intense destructive power as it flew towards the wooden target ahead.
"Boom!"
The wooden target was struck, instantly ignited, and crisply reduced to charred debris.
Wuchen's deep gaze fixed on the target not far away, yet a strong sense of disappointment flickered in his eyes. After a sigh, his face hardened with persistent determination.
"As the saying goes, even a clumsy bird must fly early. In just half a month, you've gone from a novice who couldn't even refine Chakra to someone who can easily unleash basic ninjutsu. You've done very well, Wuchen."
The comforting and pleasant female voice echoed again, its gentle tone spreading through his mind like a peerless divine medicine, instantly dispelling the gloom in Wuchen's heart.
"You're right. It's still early. Even if my talent truly isn't as good as Uchiha Itachi's or Uchiha Sasuke's, there's plenty of time in the future to improve gradually."
Quickly composing himself, Wuchen gazed at the scorched black char on the ground and began forming hand signs again. His speed was astonishingly fast; as he spoke, the hand signs were already completed, in just the blink of an eye.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
As descendants of the Six Paths, the Uchiha Clan's Chakra reserves were self-evident. It was precisely because they inherited both the Sage's Eyes and a substantial amount of Chakra that the Uchiha could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Senju as the two great noble clans of the ninja world.
And it was due to these massive Chakra reserves that Wuchen could endlessly and frantically train himself. Apart from four hours of sleep, all twenty-four hours of his day were dedicated to cultivation!
Ten years of living in obscurity had taught Wuchen the cold realities of human nature and the world. In this world, only strength was eternal, the fundamental basis for guaranteeing everything.
Without power, one was less than nothing. Just like Wuchen now, as the young clan head of the Uchiha Clan, his utility was less than that of even the weakest Genin.